National Cybersecurity Awareness Month

October is being observed as National Cybersecurity Awareness Month (NCASM), the sixteenth year of this annual initiative designed to raise awareness about the importance of cybersecurity. NCSAM 2019 is a collaborative effort between government and industry designed to that ensure every American has the resources they need to stay safer and more secure online, while increasing the resiliency of the Nation during cyber-threats.

NCSAM 2019 efforts are designed to emphasize personal accountability and stress the importance of taking proactive steps to enhance cybersecurity at home and in the workplace. This year's overarching message 'Own IT. Secure IT. Protect IT.' is designed to focus on key areas including citizen privacy, consumer devices, and e-commerce security.

As part of this initiative, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security is encouraging a number of cybersecurity actions during month and beyond. These actions include:

• Making sure anti-virus software and firewalls is installed, properly configured, and up-to-date; setting the computer to automatically update (New threats are discovered every day, and keeping software updated is one of the easier ways to protect oneself from an attack.).
• Updating the operating system and critical program software (Software updates offer the latest protection against malicious activities.); turning on automatic updating if that feature is available.
• Backing up key files; if important files are stored on a computer, copying them onto a removable disc and storing it in a safe place.

Resources:

NCSAM 2019 General Toolkit

National Cybersecurity Awareness Campaign

National Cyber Security Alliance